Eschenbach to replace Chung for SPO season opener
Christoph Eschenbach, music director of the National Symphony Orchestra, will conduct the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra for its first concert on Jan. 9 following Chung Myung-whun’s sudden resignation. / Korea Times
By Kwon Ji-youn
Renowned German conductor Christoph Eschenbach will helm the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra (SPO) for its first concert following Chung Myung-whun’s abrupt resignation as music director.
The SPO said Monday that they have invited Eschenbach to conduct the SPO’s season opener at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts on Saturday evening.
Under the baton of Eschenbach, the SPO will perform an unchanged program of Bruckner’s Ninth Symphony and Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto, Op. 64, with violinist Choi Ye-eun.
The SPO found itself in a tight spot last week after Chung offered to resign in a letter addressed to SPO employees, adding that he will not be conducting the nine SPO performances scheduled throughout 2016. His notice came amid an investigation into allegations that his wife conducted a smear campaign against former SPO CEO Park Hyun-jung along with allegations that he embezzled funds. Park resigned as CEO in December 2014 following accusations of abusing employees.
According to the SPO, Eschenbach made adjustments to his schedule to perform with the SPO this weekend.
“I am fully aware that the SPO has grown remarkably over the last 10 years under Chung’s leadership, and I have been looking forward to working with the orchestra on Mahler’s First Symphony in July,” Eschenbach reportedly told the SPO. “I understand the SPO is in rough shape and I would like to help.”
Since Chung’s departure on Dec. 29 last year, the SPO has kept busy pursuing an appropriate replacement for its concerts this year, but has faced difficulty as most world-class conductors are fully booked for the next five or so years.
“It’s not easy scouting a conductor fit to replace Chung in so short a time frame,” an SPO staffer said. “It takes all the connections the SPO has built over the last 10 years to invite a world-class conductor like Eschenbach.”
Ticket prices for all SPO concerts are being discounted given the situation, now selling for as low as 10,000 won up to 70,000 won.
The SPO is also looking to convene a task force so that it can appoint a new music director as soon as possible.
Eschenbach headed the Houston Symphony Orchestra for 11 years and the Philadelphia Orchestra for six before being appointed music director of the National Symphony Orchestra based in Washington, D.C. and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. He won the prestigious Ernst von Siemens Music Prize last year for his contributions to classical music, and his recordings have also collected a number of awards.
The conductor for the SPO’s concerts set for Jan. 16 and 17 has yet to be announced.
Meanwhile, Chung’s legal representation on Monday denied reports that the maestro on Dec. 26 had put his privately owned Gahoe-dong building on the market priced for a quick sale, allegedly as part of intentions to flee the country. Chung left for France with his family on the last day of 2015, the day his contract as SPO music director expired.